Líffræðifélag Íslands - biologia.is
Líffræðiráðstefnan 2021
Erindi/veggspjald / Talk/poster E92
Höfundar / Authors: Ásta Margrét Ásmundsdóttir (1), Alessio Gomiero (2), Þorsteinn Þorsteinsson (3), Kjell Birger Öysæd (2)
Starfsvettvangur / Affiliations: 1. University of Akureyri, 2. NORCE Norwegian Research Centre, 3. Icelandic Met Office
Kynnir / Presenter: Ásta Margrét Ásmundsdóttir
Durability, low weight and low cost of plastic has led to a great demand of the material in modern societies. However, poor waste management has resulted in the accretion of plastic in the natural environment. Increasing number of publications show the presence of microplastics (MPS) in every corner of the world, including the most remote areas such as the poles and abyssal trenches. However, due to lack of high-quality data, the understanding of their atmospheric transport and dispersion remains poorly understood. In this study, snow cores from the annual layer 2018-2019 of Hofsjökull, one of the remotest glaciers in Iceland, were analyzed for MPS. Snow core samples were collected from three locations in the Hofsjökull glacier. The samples were analyzed for polymer composition and grain size distribution using a vibrational spectroscopy- oriented technique (µ-FTIR). The results show the presence of different types of MPS in the size range between 10-178 µm in all the samples after blank correction processes. Furthermore, the results give indication of atmospheric transport of MPS in Iceland and contribute to filling an existing knowledge gap regarding MPS sources, distribution and pathways in the Arctic and Sub-Arctic regions.